We are fortunate to have such passionate nurses who deliver such compassionate care. Our wonderful nurses are one reason so many area residents proudly proclaim about NCH, “This is my hospital.”

We are now the first hospital in Southwest Florida to have adopted a new way to recognize these caregivers—the DAISY Awards for extraordinary nurses (http://daisyfoundation.org/). This program is in 900 hospitals globally and last month we celebrated our first DAISY award winners.

RN Administrative Coordinator Jeannie Kellogg shared this idea last year with the Retention and Recognition Shared Governance Council, which then adopted it with the volunteer help of RN Peggy Munson (North Naples Nurse of the Year). And now, the envelopes please, for the June 2011 nominees and winners.

·Downtown winner RN Markita Gorman, 4S nights, along with deserving nominee RN Sherry Nigro, 4S were surprised and initially speechless. An acutely ill patient in Markita’s care described the “extraordinary impression” she left: “She was right there assessing my needs and addressing my pain without me having to call for pain medicine. In my sleep, I must have been shivering and woke to find Markita gently laying a warmed blanket on me. They were small tasks, but they were great deeds.”

·North Naples ER RN Jane Buza was recognized for her coaching of colleagues. RNs Jill Zollar and Kristine Jordan, also from the ER, were other worthy nominees. A colleague lauded Jane’s “extremely infectious positive attitude,” and noted her regularly preparing snacks for her coworkers “because she knows it lightens the load and renews the spirit.” With patients, she was described as a caring, kind, highly skilled nurse, and “an absolute fanatic about patient comfort.”

·RN Misty Dudley from the Bonita Wound Healing Center was also praised by a colleague as an excellent team player with a “delightful personality” who goes out of her way to help patients and make each one feel special. Colleagues say Misty has gone above and beyond the call of duty by delivering items to patients’ homes that they may have left behind. “She has even offered to stop by a patient’s home each morning to help them put on their compression hose.”

Finally, one more noteworthy award. “This is my hospital,” our television campaign featuring grateful patients, physicians and staff, was honored with a national “Telly” Award for TV, video and film production, in the category of “overall campaign.” (http://www.tellyawards.com/awards/) NCH was competing against every non-profit hospital in the nation, regardless of size, as well as major national organizations, foundations and corporations. Director of Marketing Debbie Curry and her team were the creative wizards behind this wonderful idea, which captures the essence of our can-do, caring culture.